After posting my thoughts on the original Earfun Air earphones, Earfun reached out to see if I would be interested in reviewing their new Air Pro model. I wanted to be transparent that these were provided to me for free but that has no bearing on how I test or what I write. The Air Pro Earbuds from Earfun are effectively a direct competitor to Apple Airpods Pro at a much lower price point. These come nicely packaged with a rechargeable protective case, three pairs of silicon tips in different sizes, a USB-C cable and user manual.
The earphones themselves are of the in ear monitor (IEM) variety and reasonably small given there are no cables or external units attached. The housings are fashioned from plastic with a satin finish offering good strength and lightness - they weigh in at 7g each.
Playback time is rated at 9 hours of normal use or 7 hours with ANC enabled which is a very respectable figure and the charging case can extend this giving a total playback time of around 32 hours.
These Bluetooth 5 earphones support HFP, HSP, AVRCP & A2DP profiles although there is no mention of support for the aptX codec. Bluetooth range is quoted as 15m which should pose no issue given the audio source would typically be worn on the user for this type of earphone. Pairing with my iPhone for testing was as simple as opening the case and turning on Bluetooth on my phone -they showed up instantly and paired after a single tap. I did test these in my office by leaving my iPhone on the desk and walking a few metres away through two internal walls without a single blip or dropout so the range of these is certainly up to the task provided you avoid major obstacles. Keeping the phone in my back pocket during testing did not cause any dropouts either which was a pleasant surprise as this has affected other Bluetooth earphones I have used.
Each earbud has a discreet multifunction tap area, it is not a physical button, but no LED to indicate operating, pairing and power status - this is on the case itself. Tapping controls things such as ANC mode, play/pause, track skipping, call answering/rejecting and will also activate Siri or alternative voice assistants on non Apple devices. Call quality is as expected with calls coming in nice and clear and the caller reported no issues on their side.
New out of the box, first impressions are certainly favourable. They have a surprisingly detailed sound with a good, clear midrange and separation. Bass comes through with a satisfying tight thump which feels both strong and well controlled. Treble is always present and provides a little sparkle without ever sounding overly bright - in fact this is arguably the weakest area of the sound but only because the lower and mid ranges come across so well. With more complex tracks, these earphones still manage to keep up with the pace, especially after being run in for a few hours. Sonically, these really impress and in my opinion are probably a good match for the AirPods Pro, even excelling when it comes to bass reproduction.
These are comfortable to wear with the selection of tips on offer contributing to this. One observation I did have is after a long period of listening to these earphones, on removing them I could feel a physical relief. It seems I need to ensure I have them placed perfectly for the best comfort for longer listening sessions - not something I ever noticed or need to do with the AirPods Pro and I suspect this is because the Earfun are ever so slightly larger.
These are billed as having active noise cancellation and transparency modes and this was something I was keen to try out as Earfun rate them as having a higher noise cancelling ability than the AirPods Pro. I didn’t have any scientific way of measuring this so I have to rely on my own side by side impressions. In my opinion, the active noise cancellation on the whole is probably as effective as the AirPods Pro - I tested at home with the likes of the tumble dryer on or when out walking and passing car noise. At times, I felt they were not quite as good as the AirPods Pro and at other times, more effective. It really does seem to depend on the type of background noise but one observation is that these are not as jarring as the AirPods Pro when switching between the various modes. One reason for this is when you test the earphones without any music playing, these sound very neutral whereas the AirPods Pro feel like they have some form of mechanical suppression going on - like you can feel them working. It’s hard to describe, it feels like they both do a good job but do it differently.
It does seem that the Earfun take a second or two for the noise cancellation to really get tuned in. Ultimately, I’m happy with both as I think they both do a respectable job at noise suppression. Testing out the ambient/transparency mode, these were good but I think I think the AirPods presented the ambient noises a little clearer and sounded slightly more effective, if sounding a little less natural at the same time. I found it a little easier holding a conversation with this mode enabled on the AirPods Pro.
I had the chance to try these while using a rowing machine and the noise reduction does make a noticeable improvement for listening. They also stayed safely in place while I was out on a bike ride and this is a time where I welcome the transparency mode for awareness when out and about. These are also IPX7 rated making them waterproof and sweatproof so likely a great combination for the active user.
The noise cancellation also extends to phone calls with the person on the other end of the call reporting me coming across loud and clear.
The charging case measures in at 65 x 52 x 29mm and weighs just under 53g including the earphones. The earphones drop in ear tip down and are held securely in place magnetically. The case is a nice design and the cover closes with a reassuring snap into place but it does feel very light and lacks a little of the density of the AirPods Pro case. On the bottom of the case you will find the USB-C port for charging the case with the included cable. Charging time is around 2 hours for the case and the earbuds also take around 1.5 hours for a full charge in the case. No wireless charging feature is available with this model however.
There are some nice practical touches such as the earbuds power on and off automatically when retrieving or storing in the case. I also like that you can operate a single earphone on its own which is great when out cycling as it means I can listen to music or take calls while leaving one ear free for safety reasons if I don’t want to employ the transparency mode. This also means the other earphone is safely tucked away in the charging case, ready for use if the operating earphone runs out of battery, effectively doubling the runtime! I also found the music paused and restarted perfectly each time an earphone was removed and placed back in the ear.
For the money, you are getting a great Bluetooth earphone package if you like being free from any cables with the added practicality of a storage case that also provides charging duties when out and about. I consider these very good all-round earphones indeed, and a great value alternative to the likes of the Apple Airpods Pro. Comparing directly with the AirPods Pro, I think these are obviously a lot cheaper and have a better lower end on the audio front. The AirPods Pro win out if you value the convenience when switching between a few different Apple devices or really need the clearest transparency mode and for me are ever so slightly more comfortable. It’s a very close call for me at least.
The earphones themselves are of the in ear monitor (IEM) variety and reasonably small given there are no cables or external units attached. The housings are fashioned from plastic with a satin finish offering good strength and lightness - they weigh in at 7g each.
Playback time is rated at 9 hours of normal use or 7 hours with ANC enabled which is a very respectable figure and the charging case can extend this giving a total playback time of around 32 hours.
These Bluetooth 5 earphones support HFP, HSP, AVRCP & A2DP profiles although there is no mention of support for the aptX codec. Bluetooth range is quoted as 15m which should pose no issue given the audio source would typically be worn on the user for this type of earphone. Pairing with my iPhone for testing was as simple as opening the case and turning on Bluetooth on my phone -they showed up instantly and paired after a single tap. I did test these in my office by leaving my iPhone on the desk and walking a few metres away through two internal walls without a single blip or dropout so the range of these is certainly up to the task provided you avoid major obstacles. Keeping the phone in my back pocket during testing did not cause any dropouts either which was a pleasant surprise as this has affected other Bluetooth earphones I have used.
Each earbud has a discreet multifunction tap area, it is not a physical button, but no LED to indicate operating, pairing and power status - this is on the case itself. Tapping controls things such as ANC mode, play/pause, track skipping, call answering/rejecting and will also activate Siri or alternative voice assistants on non Apple devices. Call quality is as expected with calls coming in nice and clear and the caller reported no issues on their side.
New out of the box, first impressions are certainly favourable. They have a surprisingly detailed sound with a good, clear midrange and separation. Bass comes through with a satisfying tight thump which feels both strong and well controlled. Treble is always present and provides a little sparkle without ever sounding overly bright - in fact this is arguably the weakest area of the sound but only because the lower and mid ranges come across so well. With more complex tracks, these earphones still manage to keep up with the pace, especially after being run in for a few hours. Sonically, these really impress and in my opinion are probably a good match for the AirPods Pro, even excelling when it comes to bass reproduction.
These are comfortable to wear with the selection of tips on offer contributing to this. One observation I did have is after a long period of listening to these earphones, on removing them I could feel a physical relief. It seems I need to ensure I have them placed perfectly for the best comfort for longer listening sessions - not something I ever noticed or need to do with the AirPods Pro and I suspect this is because the Earfun are ever so slightly larger.
These are billed as having active noise cancellation and transparency modes and this was something I was keen to try out as Earfun rate them as having a higher noise cancelling ability than the AirPods Pro. I didn’t have any scientific way of measuring this so I have to rely on my own side by side impressions. In my opinion, the active noise cancellation on the whole is probably as effective as the AirPods Pro - I tested at home with the likes of the tumble dryer on or when out walking and passing car noise. At times, I felt they were not quite as good as the AirPods Pro and at other times, more effective. It really does seem to depend on the type of background noise but one observation is that these are not as jarring as the AirPods Pro when switching between the various modes. One reason for this is when you test the earphones without any music playing, these sound very neutral whereas the AirPods Pro feel like they have some form of mechanical suppression going on - like you can feel them working. It’s hard to describe, it feels like they both do a good job but do it differently.
It does seem that the Earfun take a second or two for the noise cancellation to really get tuned in. Ultimately, I’m happy with both as I think they both do a respectable job at noise suppression. Testing out the ambient/transparency mode, these were good but I think I think the AirPods presented the ambient noises a little clearer and sounded slightly more effective, if sounding a little less natural at the same time. I found it a little easier holding a conversation with this mode enabled on the AirPods Pro.
I had the chance to try these while using a rowing machine and the noise reduction does make a noticeable improvement for listening. They also stayed safely in place while I was out on a bike ride and this is a time where I welcome the transparency mode for awareness when out and about. These are also IPX7 rated making them waterproof and sweatproof so likely a great combination for the active user.
The noise cancellation also extends to phone calls with the person on the other end of the call reporting me coming across loud and clear.
The charging case measures in at 65 x 52 x 29mm and weighs just under 53g including the earphones. The earphones drop in ear tip down and are held securely in place magnetically. The case is a nice design and the cover closes with a reassuring snap into place but it does feel very light and lacks a little of the density of the AirPods Pro case. On the bottom of the case you will find the USB-C port for charging the case with the included cable. Charging time is around 2 hours for the case and the earbuds also take around 1.5 hours for a full charge in the case. No wireless charging feature is available with this model however.
There are some nice practical touches such as the earbuds power on and off automatically when retrieving or storing in the case. I also like that you can operate a single earphone on its own which is great when out cycling as it means I can listen to music or take calls while leaving one ear free for safety reasons if I don’t want to employ the transparency mode. This also means the other earphone is safely tucked away in the charging case, ready for use if the operating earphone runs out of battery, effectively doubling the runtime! I also found the music paused and restarted perfectly each time an earphone was removed and placed back in the ear.
For the money, you are getting a great Bluetooth earphone package if you like being free from any cables with the added practicality of a storage case that also provides charging duties when out and about. I consider these very good all-round earphones indeed, and a great value alternative to the likes of the Apple Airpods Pro. Comparing directly with the AirPods Pro, I think these are obviously a lot cheaper and have a better lower end on the audio front. The AirPods Pro win out if you value the convenience when switching between a few different Apple devices or really need the clearest transparency mode and for me are ever so slightly more comfortable. It’s a very close call for me at least.
